BUSINESSES in Sefton are warned to be on their guard for a bogus council official claiming building work must be carried out to meet the needs of a new disability act.

BUSINESSES in Sefton are warned to be on their guard for a bogus council official claiming building work must be carried out to meet the needs of a new disability act.

The bogus representative has already struck in Seaforth, claiming he would carry out a survey to see if the premises conformed with the Disability Discrimination Act, due in October.

There are concerns this man may charge businesses to have work carried out, which could be completely unnecessary.

Sefton Council's Disabled Access Officer, Mike Murphy, said: "We want people to be aware that we do not currently have any staff cold- calling businesses to tell them about DDA and if they have any suspicions they should ask for identification.

" Genuine council officers will have appropriate identification and this should always be asked for. If people do have concerns about the identity of any caller to their home or business they should contact the police.

"The onus is on private businesses to conform to the DDA when in comes into action later this year, but we are not carrying out surveys of private businesses.

"If any business in Sefton needs free advice or information about DDA they should call the council's Social Inclusion Unit on 934 2748."